The Right Choice
by Chayah
Summary: Instead of going on the road trip with Ben Felicity realizes that Berlin is the RIGHT choice...
1. Default Chapter

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The Right Choice

This story takes place at the end of Season 1 where Felicity has to make the choice of either going on a road trip with Ben or to Berlin with Noel. It starts off in her empty door room alone on the floor talking to Sally…

Felicity: Dear Sally…it's the end of my first year of college and I'm just about to head out the door to whatever my summer will be. I have a big decision to make and I'm so scared I will make the wrong one. Ben asked me to go on a road trip with him and a big part of me wants to go with him. I'm so curious about what could happen between us. At the same time my feelings are so strong for Noel. I think I have to go with Ben, he was what I've wanted all this time. Ok…I gotta go. I'll tell you later how everything goes.

Felicity puts her bag over her shoulder and walks out there door. She turns around to look at her empty room finding it hard to believe that she finished her Freshman year and had survived. She then shut the door and walked to the elevator, which was going to take her on to the next chapter in her life.

She got in the taxi and asked the driver to bring her to Ben's apartment. She sat back and smiled because she knew it was the right decision. She watched everyone outside as they hurried around continuing their daily life. Suddenly a sharp pain hit her stomach as she pictured Noel waiting for her at the airport but she pushed the image quickly out of her head. She'd made her decision.

When she got to Ben she got out of the cab and he gave her a big hug.

"I'm glad you're coming with me," he said as they hugged.

"Yeah, me too," she said not as happily as she thought she'd be. Her mind kept drifting to Noel.

"You ready to head off?" he asked as he reached out to get her bag from her to put in the car.

"I don't know…" she said as she stood there unsure of her decision.

"What don't you know?" he asked worried.

"I can't," she said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" he was getting upset.

"I thought going with you was what I had to do but now that I'm here I realize that I really want to be with Noel," she said flagging down another taxi.

"Are you kidding me? You are already here," he said noticeably mad.

"I'm sorry Ben, but I have to do what feels right. I'd never be able to stop thinking about Noel and Berlin," she said as she kissed Ben on the cheek and jumped in the taxi, "to the airport!"

The taxi sped off and she worried that she wasn't going to make it to Noel on time. She sat anxiously as she watched everyone run around going on with their lives. She realized that someday that was going to be her but for now she could follow her heart.

When the taxi finally got to the airport she had less than 5 minutes to get there in time. She ran through all the crowds of people and apologizing every time she pushed someone. When she got to the bag check there was an insanely long line and she just wanted to cry. It seemed that maybe she was going to miss going to Berlin and it was her own fault. She'd gone to Ben when it was Noel in her heart all along. When she finally found her way to the terminal she saw that they were already boarding and Noel was about to walk into the tunnel. 

"Noel!" Felicity screamed across the crowds of people and they all stared at her. Noel looked confused for a moment as he turned his head and then suddenly realized it was Felicity. The look on his face was priceless as his eyes lit up. He pushed his way out of the line towards Felicity and she started running towards him. They then embraced in such a huge hug that he spun her around a few times. 

"I can't believe you came," he said with a glowing smile and his hands behind her head. 

"I went to Ben first but then I couldn't stop thinking about you," she said as she kissed him on the lips and he contined that with a sensual passionate kiss as his fingers entwined in her hair.

"The plane is about to leave, let's go," he said as he grabbed her bag and then her hand and then made their way onto the flight to Berlin.

When they sat down in their seats and put their seatbelts on Felicity immediately reached over to hold Noel's hand. He turned to her and smiled.

"I gotta be honest…I didn't think you would choose me," he said squeezing her hand.

"I didn't either," she said leaning her head back against the seat as she looked at him, "if I had gone with Ben it would have ruined his and my friendship and mine with yours as well. I would have not been able to think about anyone but you the entire time."

"What happened to being in love with Ben and going across the country to go to the same school as him?"

"It was a fantasy. I was in love with the idea of Ben…and because of that I never could see what was right in front of me. My very best friend and the guy I was really in love with," she said kissing him.

"Think Ben will forgive you for going off with me?" he said as the plane started to take off.

"Yeah, he'll move onto another girl pretty soon I'm sure," she said as she prepared for the take-off.

"This is going to be an amazing summer."

"I know, I can't wait for it to begin," she smiled and closed her eyes as the plane went into the air.

The first thing Felicity and Noel did when they got to Berlin was to settle in at the hotel. It was a quaint hotel; nothing too fancy but no cockroaches or anything. Noel offered that they could get separate rooms but she knew that she wanted to stay with him. He was pleased she felt that way. 

"What shall we do now?" Felicity asked as they walked into the room. With that Noel grabbed her in his arms and intensely kissed her. Felicity then wrapped her arms around him too and they fell to the bed. As clothes begin to come off Noel actually was the one to stop it.

"I could stay inside with you the entire time…but let's go and do some site seeing," he said as he got up off the bed and pulled her up off it as well.

"You sure?" she asked as she softly kissed his neck and she moaned.

"How am I supposed to say no?" he said as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him.

"You're right, we should go out," she said pulling away and giggling.

"This summer is going to be torture isn't it?" he said with a grin.

"Only in a good way," she says with a smirk and they head outside.

For a week or so when they had time together they'd go walking everywhere and just see the sites. When Noel was working Felicity just relaxed in the hotel room. Sometimes she'd read, sometimes she'd make a message to Sally and other times she would draw or paint. She was having an amazing time.

One evening when Noel came back, as usual, Felicity was in the middle of a sketch.

"Get dressed up. We're going out to eat at a nice place tonight," Noel said putting down his briefcase.

"No takeout tonight?" she said as he leaned down to her in the chair and kissed her.

"No not tonight," he smiled as he lay down on the bed with a sigh.

"Alright, I'm gonna take a shower and get ready," she said as she headed off to the bathroom.

When Felicity was done getting ready Noel had been on the balcony reading so he could let her do her thing without getting in her way.

"I'm ready," she said as she stepped out onto the balcony in front of him. The warm breeze was blowing through her hair and she looked like she came out of a painting or something. She was wearing a long flowing violet dress that had an antique style to it. It had spaghetti straps and hung off her in a very alluring way. Her hair was swept up with curls falling down around her face. "How do I look?" she asked as she spun around.

Noel was speechless for a moment as he stared at her.

"I've never seen you look so gorgeous since the day I met you. I didn't think you could get prettier," he said as he stood up and put his arms around her waist.

"You don't look so bad yourself," she said as she yanked on his tie and gave him a hard kiss on the lips and pulled him off with her.

It was such a warm night that it made you skin gleam. They sat down at a small table by candlelight under the stars. They had a wonderful meal and laughed almost the entire time. That was one of the things she loved best about being around Noel, she was always laughing.

When they were done with dinner they took a scenic walk back to the hotel room hand in hand. When they got into the hotel room Noel kicked off his shoes immediately and so did she. She was about to slip off her dress when she suddenly felt Noel put his arms around her from behind and started kissing her neck and shoulders. She leaned her head back and sighed. She could feel his fingers gliding down her bare arm.

Felicity turned around towards Noel and looked up to his warm hazel eyes looking down into hers. They stared at each other for a moment as if they couldn't look away and were almost afraid to continue. He touched her cheek gently as she bit her bottom lip in ecstasy. They felt like they were going to explode from the heat rising between them. Without being able to resist anymore he kissed her lips with all his energy. He was almost shaking from the intensity between them.

She then grabbed a hold of his tie and pulled it off as quickly as she could muster. She then unbuttoned his shirt as fast as she could and tossed it to the floor. Next he unzipped her dress and just let it fall off her moist body to fall at her feet. He then picked her up so her legs wrapped around his waist and carried her to the bed. 

They fell to the bed without pausing their enveloping kiss. Noel was on top of her and continued to kiss every inch of her body. He kissed down her chest to her stomach and her legs. Felicity then pushed him up on his knees to pull off his belt and then unzip his pants. They threw them off onto the floor and then the only thing that was between them were his boxer shorts and her underwear. 

Just as he was about to pull down her underwear off he stopped.

"Are you sure about this?" he said as Felicity caught her breath again.

"Very sure," she said with a smile.

He smiled back at her and as he stared her deep in the eyes he pulled her underwear down very slowly. She was so anxious that she held her breath the entire time. He pulled them down off her legs and dropped them on the floor. He then kissed slowly up each leg. He then licked all the way up her stomach until he got to her lips…where he passionately kissed her as they began to make-love. 

Afterwards she laid her head on his chest. They were dripping with sweat and out of breath. 

"I can't believe we waited so long to do that," she said while giggling.

"I can't believe you are actually new to this?" he said brushing her hair out of her face with his fingers.

"Well, I'm definitely up for doing this again…and again," she said giggling more and hugging him tighter.

"I have wanted to do that with you since I first saw you. I still find it hard to believe this isn't all a dream," he said giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"How about I show you this isn't a dream," she said climbing on top of him again. As they are kissing the phone rings.

"Yeah, this always happens in my dreams," Noel says reaching for the phone as Felicity laughs and moves off of him.

"Hello?" Noel says with a smile but it suddenly drops. He pauses holding the phone away for a moment and holds the phone out to Felicity, "it's Ben."


	2. Chapter 2

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The Right Choice:

Chapter 2

Felicity grabbed the phone from Noel as she sat up in the bed in frustration.  
"Hello?" she said as Noel put his boxer shorts on and got out of bed. Felicity watched Noel walking across the room. She could tell he was upset by this but as he turned around to look at her he gave her a smile. A smile that reminded her she was with the right guy. With that he walked out onto the balcony.  
"Hey," Ben said sadly.  
"Is everything okay?" she asked worried. If he was calling her all the way in Berlin it had to be something important.  
"When are you coming home?" he asked in his usual whisper.  
"Ben, you called me all the way in Berlin only to ask me that?" she said annoyed.  
"No…" he paused, "I can't stop thinking about you. I really thought we had something."  
"I know, I thought we did too Ben. It was just a fantasy though. It was a fantasy for me and for you it was the control you had over me. You liked me having a crush on you. You're upset because you feel you lost."  
"That isn't it at all!" he said upset, "You know you don't really like Noel. For all these months you've gushed to him about me. All this time I'm the one you've been thinking of."  
"You're right, but when it came down to choose the one I wanted to be with I wanted my best friend and the guy that has been there for me from the beginning. Once I truly opened my eyes and saw Noel no other guy could compare," she said not sure how he'd react.  
"Are you sure it's Noel? Because I'm not going to wait around."  
"Yeah…I'm sure Ben," she said pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging them.  
"Ok well…I don't think we can be friends then," he said angrily.  
"Are you serious?" she asked shocked.  
"Yeah."  
"You can't do that!" Felicity said insistent.  
"Watch me," he said as he hung up.  
After that Felicity hung up the phone and just sat there dumfounded. She never expected that she'd lose Ben entirely. He'd become someone very important to her, especially over the last few months. She didn't realize that he cared that much. She then looked out and saw that Noel was leaning out over the balcony looking at the city below. He looked so sexy and so strong. Strong in a way that she knew she could always and forever count on him no matter what. That was a lot for a guy to be able to offer.  
She walked out to Noel on the balcony. She wrapped her arms around him from behind and prepared herself for him freaking out. Afterall…that is what he usually did. He was always so insecure of Ben, not that he didn't have every right with how she'd always acted. The only thing was, even if it took her all year to realize, Ben could never be even ½ the man that Noel already was.  
"Hey you," Felicity said quietly.   
"Hey," he said back, "what did Ben want?"  
"It doesn't matter," she said not knowing how to say what she wanted to say.  
"He wanted you to leave me and go back to him didn't he?" Noel asked not turning his but still looking out over the city.  
"How did you know?" she asked.  
"Because no guy in his right mind could not love you."  
"Noel!" she said as her face beamed. She swung around so she was standing in front of him. They both wrapped their arms around each other tightly.  
"But are you sure this is where you wanted to be?" he asked leaning in so his forehead rested against hers. They both closed their eyes.  
"Noel, I don't even know what I've been thinking all this year. I've been acting so childish…following Ben around like a lovesick school girl. I ran off to this college so far away from home to follow this crush and ended up falling in love with my best friend. My heart feels so full that it might explode…" she said hugging him tightly, "I mean…I told you…I almost did go with Ben. It wasn't until the very last minute that I realized that all this time it was you."  
With that he glared into her soft blue eyes and kissed her with all the emotion he felt at that very minute. With that they made love again.

Before Felicity knew it another week had past and it was time for them to head back to the United States. Noel was going to Chicago and Felicity to California. Felicity and Noel desperately didn't want to be apart but there wasn't much they could do about it. Felicity was in fact worried about being in the same city as Ben but in the long run she knew that friendship was all she wanted from him now.  
Luckily Felicity and Noel were able to take the same flight back. Felicity had her layover in Chicago and Noel insisted that she stay the night at his parent's house with him. Felicity was a little nervous about this because all this time she'd never met his parents.  
When they first walked into his house his mother screamed and hugged him.  
"I've missed you so much!" she said so happily Felicity thought she'd burst.  
"Hi mom," Noel said hugging her back. She could tell they were close. Felicity immediately got such a warm feeling from being in his house, "mom, thi is Felicity."  
"I've been wanting to put a face to the name all this time. Noel's said so much about you," she said hugging her. Though Felicity could feel that she wasn't as thrilled as she was acting. She wasn't sure why.  
"Same about you," Felicity said with a smile.  
"Where is dad?" Noel asked.  
"On a business trip. He'll be home in a couple days. Let me show you guys to your rooms," she said as she led them upstairs.  
Felicity and Noel shared a big grin with each other. Neither were surprised about the separate rooms and it was totally fine. Felicity put her things down in the guestroom she was staying in and looked at all the pictures of Noel as a little boy. He was probably the cutest kid she'd ever seen. She lay down on the bed for a little while and though of the last 2 weeks with Noel. All the long walks they took and the late night talks in the bedroom.   
After dinner they were sitting around drinking coffee when Noel went off to check his email. Felicity and his mother were sitting together in the living room.  
"So…how did you guys end up together?" she asked very bluntly.  
"Well, I had to pick between either Noel or this guy Ben. I chose Noel," she said taking a sip of her coffee.  
"Noel really loves you a lot. He was so happy with Hannah and I really liked them together…but I've never seen him this happy before," she said with a smile.  
"I've never met anyone like him in my life. You have an amazing son Mrs. Crane," Felicity said feeling nervous still.  
"Are you sure that Noel is who you want to be with?" she asked out of the blue again.  
"Ummm…" she said not knowing how to respond.  
"I know what you and Noel went through this year. I don't know details but I know enough. My son and I are really close and I can't bear to see him hurt. When he's with you he's happier than I've ever seen…but when you guys fight he's in more pain than I've ever seen."  
"Really?" she said looking down at her hands, she couldn't look at Mrs. Crane.  
"Part of me wishes he was still with Hannah, because I know she could never hurt him the way he's hurt with you," she paused and Felicity gulped, "but the way he looks at you, it reminds me of how my husband looked at me in the beginning."   
Felicity then looked up at her and Mrs. Crane was smiling. Just then Felicity's heart stopped pounding.  
"I don't know what is going to happen in the future. I'm only 19 years old. But I can say honestly that Noel's the only person in my life I can't imagine not having around. I know no matter what happens that we'll always be friends," she said and looked up and saw that Noel was walking into the room. She smiled at him and he sat down next to her. He put his arms around her from behind and kissed her cheek.  
"You tired babe?" he asked taking a sip of her coffee, "ack! How can you use equal in your coffee!?"  
She giggles. "Yeah I am pretty tired," as she yawns on cue.  
"I'll see you kids in the morning," she said as she gives Noel a kiss on the cheek.  
Felicity and Noel went and got ready for bed. As Felicity was brushing her teeth Noel came in and brushed his as well. Then he gave her a big kiss on the cheek all full of toothpaste and she did this like quiet gasp thing. Noel then closed the door behind him and grabbed her with a full blown kiss. As he pressed his body against her all she wanted to do was rip his clothes off. He then lifted her up and put her on the sink as he kissed down her neck. Just as she started getting into it she realized that this wasn't the best way to get on Mrs. Crane's good side.  
"Noel, we can't," she said pushing him away.  
"Oh come on," he said heavily breathing, "I never had sex in my house."  
"I don't want to upset your mom. She barely even likes me yet," she said laughing as he repeatedly kissed her over and over.

Felicity and Noel left the bathroom and went to their separate bedrooms. Neither could get to sleep. She'd slept by his side for the last 2 weeks and it was torture not having his body next to her. What was she going to do for the rest of the summer thousands of miles away from him? Noel also tossed and turned feeling like it was especially hot that night. All he could think about was the feel of her bare skin next to his. He loved how she smelled and how she looked while she was sleeping.  
Felicity couldn't stand it anymore. She got out of bed and headed for the door but stopped just as she put her hand on the doorknob. She realized that she had to be strong. It wasn't right of her to go to Noel's bed at his parent's house…and what if she saw her going in his room? She really didn't want to get on this woman's bad side. She already had to live up to the image of Hannah. So, still frustrated, she got back into bed.   
As Felicity tried to get back to sleep she suddenly felt Noel's arms around her and his lips on her neck by a small soft kiss. For a moment she thought she was dreaming but then she realized she was still awake.  
"What are you doing here?" she whispered.  
"I missed you," he said in a whisper back.  
"But I don't want to get in trouble Noel," she said giggling softly.  
"We won't, I'll make sure to go back to my room early enough in the morning," he said cuddling in more to her.  
"Ok, but we can't have sex," she said pulling him in closer to her.  
"I wouldn't dream of it," he said with a smirk as they both fell asleep in each other's arms.

Felicity woke up to Noel already gone but he'd left her a note. 

Thanks for letting me hold you for another night, Love Noel.

It was so simple but so sweet, a very Noel thing to do. She then got out of bed and headed downstairs for breakfast. As she got to the bottom of the stairs she could smell freshly cooked eggs and just made coffee. She was sad she had to go back to Palo Alto today but she knew things would be fine. Just as she walked into the kitchen everything changed.  
"Good morning, Felicity," his mother said.  
"Good morning," Hannah said.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Felicity just stood there in shock not sure what to do. Noel turned around having just poured himself some coffee and he looked very scared.

"Want a cup of coffee?" he asked obviously not knowing how else to handle this.

"Um…" Felicity paused and then just headed out of the kitchen and back up to her room.

Noel came into her room shortly after she did and she was already furiously packing. She couldn't believe Hannah was there, it was exactly how her life always went. Just when everything seemed perfect something came to ruin it for her.

Noel sat on her bed quietly as she attempted to ignore him as best as she could.

"Why are you packing?" he asked as he was very aware he needed to tread lightly.

"Are you kidding me?" she snapped as she just started tossing clothes into her bag without folding.

"Yeah, I know you are upset Hannah is here but it's not what you think."

"I know she's here, that's all I care about!"

"My mom has just stayed in touch with her and she just stopped by to say hi. It's completely innocent Felicity."

"C'mon Noel. You can't really believe that. After the way she was last time? Look what she did to our relationship the last time she 'showed up'!"

"You know I have to say, this isn't really fair. After everything you put me through with Ben can you really make such a deal about Hannah?" he said standing and beginning to pace.

"Noel! She's in your mom's kitchen!" Felicity said with frustration and then closed up her suitcase.

"I can't make my mom make her leave, we are still friends," he said stubbornly.

"That's fine, I'm leaving then!"

Felicity stormed out of the house and Noel still drove her to the airport. They didn't talk during the drive although there was so much they both wanted to say. She didn't want to leave things like this and she couldn't understand how they couldn't let these things go.

Noel helped her take her things out of the car when they got to airport. They stood there in silence for a moment. Felicity then just picked up her bag and began to walk away.

"Wait!" he said as she stopped but didn't turn around.

"What Noel?" she said in a very sad and disappointed tone.

"I don't want this to end," he said as he walked up to her and put his hand on her arm.

"We can't have this distance between us the rest of the summer if we're still like this," she said and turned around, "it was so wonderful in Berlin but we're not ready for the real world. I'll be in the same place as Ben all summer and you'll be here where Hannah is. Neither of us are ready to trust each other enough."

"Ok, so what does this mean?" he said softly stroking her arm.

"This means we go on with our lives the rest of the summer and hope that we can find a way back to each other by next semester," she said as she leaned up and softly kissed his lips. He leaned in to kiss her more but she pulled away and headed to her terminal. She was ok until she sat down on the plane and she realized she couldn't go back to him. Tears started running down her face as she realized she just left Noel with Hannah for the whole summer. She didn't want to be without Noel but life had left them no choice.

Felicity thought of Noel everyday for the first 2 weeks she was home and just went to work at a bookstore of which she got a job for the summer. She saw all of her friends pretty often but she was so disappointed by how everything turned out she wasn't the most fun person to be around. She and Noel hadn't even talked since she left, she had no idea what he was up to…or who he was with.

She was on her break enjoying a good book and an iced coffee over in the corner when she heard "hey" behind her. She turned to see, yes it was Ben. Somehow Ben always shows up when she's her most vulnerable.

"Hey," she said with an uneasy smile but happy to see him despite their last conversation.

"I had heard you were back and just wanted to say hi," he said and there was an awkward silence, "mind if I sit?"

"Oh yeah sure. Sorry," she said as she welcomed him to sit across from her. They smiled at each other and she put down her book.

"How are things?" he asked leaning back in his chair as he always does, there was something so appealing about it. Hell there was something appealing about him in general.

"Alright," she said obviously showing things weren't 'alright.'

"Something happen after Berlin?"

"Way to be subtle Ben," she laughed a little. She wasn't sure of his intentions right now but it was nice to have someone to talk to who knew the 'college' Felicity. All her high school friends didn't know the person she was now and it made it weird at times.

"What can I say?" he said with his usual crooked smile.

"Yeah we kinda broke up, I guess. It was after we got back from Berlin. Hannah was there, it was bad," she said shaking her head as she remembered the ordeal.

"Did he cheat on you?" he said getting angry.

"No, no. She was just saying hi to his mom but it just brought up major trust issues. We just realized we couldn't safely last the whole summer," as she got a little choked up thinking about it again.

"Oh, that sucks," he said touching her hand. Her first impulse was thinking he was making a move but then she realized he was just being nice.

They started spending time together and it was nice. It was just friendship though and he turned out to be a really good friend. Of course there were moments where he seemed to want her as more than a friend but it always disappeared. Hanging around with Ben definitely helped her get her mind off of Noel although it did occur to her that if she was spending so much time with Ben it could be the same with Noel and Hannah. This was something she just had to accept though.

It was the end of August now and school would be starting in less than a week. She was excited to get back to her life in New York but was nervous to see Noel. Would they fall right back into their passionate romance? Would he not want to be involved with her? Would they lose everything including their friendship?

Felicity and Ben headed back at different times so she'd be showing up to the dorms alone. She hoped to have her own room this year because she was going to be a Resident Advisor, like Noel was to her. Finding herself walking down the old hallway again automatically put a smile on her face and she felt back at home.

She found her new room and it was glorious. It was huge, she was really looking forward to having her privacy unlike last year. As she sat on her bed she looked across the room and saw another bed already occupied and other boxes around the room. No way, I can't have a roommate. Then she saw the one thing she'd dreaded, the box.

"Yeah, I puked a little when I found out we were living together again too," Megan said as she walked in the door.

"But I'm an RA, I need my own room!" Felicity said with a hint of a whine.

"Yeah I bitched for an hour but I guess threatening doesn't do any good around here. Some of the rooms were damaged over the summer so there is a shortage," she said as she started changing in front of her, she hadn't changed.

"This can't be," Felicity said covering her face with her hands.

"Don't worry, I put a spell on them," she said as she threw on a see-thru shirt and headed for the door, "Just don't forget, I'm not your answering service. Tell your men that!" Then she was gone.

Felicity then started unpacking when there was a knock on the door and as she turned around her stomach flipped over several times. It was Noel and he looked more gorgeous than ever.

"Hey…" he said with a smile.

"Hey Noel," she responded wanting desperately to hug him.

"Can we talk a minute?" he asked cautiously.

"Of course," she said with a warm smile inviting him in and he closed t he door.

"I've been going over and over what I was going to say to you for the longest time. I thought maybe I should be cool and not say too much or maybe I should just give you time to settle in. Then of course the last minute I decide to screw all that and just tell you how much I've missed you," he said nervously.

"I've missed you too. I've thought about you all summer and wanted to talk to you so bad," she said as they hugged tightly for a while and she even began crying a little.

When they pulled away he smiled gently and wiped a tear off her face. They stared at each other for a moment and were about to kiss when there was a knock. Ben then walked in the door while saying "I think I figured out that movie we were talking about last week is about—" when he realized what he'd walked in during. Noel's face dropped and Felicity had no words.


End file.
